HBLEDs have become an attractive alternative to light bulbs (incandescent and other technologies) due to their significantly higher efficiency and longer service life. Unlike light bulbs however, HBLEDs cannot be driven directly from the AC power line. An AC to DC Power Supply is required in order to provide isolation, step-down and rectification functions, among others. This power supply must incorporate power factor correction (PFC), high surge immunity and long service life to make LED lighting viable on a large scale. Power factor corrected power supplies in the prior art typically rely upon metal oxide varistors (MOV) or gas discharge tubes for surge suppression. The level of protection these devices provide unfortunately deteriorates with each successive surge event, yielding over time a virtually unprotected system. Street light applications, among others, specifically require long term robustness against repeated occurrences such as lightning strikes, line surges, etc. What is missing from the art is a driver circuit addressing all these and other needs.